NASCAR announce aero rule changes

Daytona International Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway are the only two tracks on the NASCAR schedule that use restrictor plates on the carburettor along with an aerodynamics package to help keep the cars well under 200 miles per hour.

The width of the Ford's rear spoiler will be decreased from 59 inches to 57 inches. The Pontiac's rear spoiler will remain at 59 inches wide, while the Chevrolet's rear spoiler will still be 57 inches wide.

The Dodge teams will still use a 1.375-inch tall roof mounted air deflector. However, the deflector will now have to form a straight line, which will raise the outer edges' height, increasing drag. Prior to this modification, the deflector had a shape similar to the contour of the roof.

Measurements for the Chevrolet and Pontiac models remain unchanged for the April 22 race, while the overall concept of the controversial superspeedway aero package - which many drivers say supplied overly close racing at Daytona in February - remains unaltered.

"I gladly accept the inches off of our spoiler, because I think we're going to be more competitive with the Chevrolet and the Pontiac," said Greg Specht, North American Operations Manager for Ford Racing Technology. "Now we'll just have to race and see what happens. Unfortunately, I don't think it's enough to take away the advantage that the Dodge has, but it will even us up with the rest of the cars. The Dodges were 20 or 30 horsepower [in terms of drag] better than we were.

"This change will move us in the right direction, maybe cutting half of their advantage. At the plate tracks we were at a disadvantage compared to everybody. Taking two inches off of our spoiler brings us even with the Chevy and the Pontiac, but I'm not convinced that the roof spoiler change brings Dodge back to the other three makes."



Chevrolet won the first four Winston Cup races of the season before Ford driver Dale Jarrett won at Darlington last Sunday. The Ford teams would like to see additional rules changes at the non-restrictor plate tracks on the schedule.

"I was told by (Winston Cup director) Gary Nelson that there will not be a rules change for Bristol this weekend," Specht said. "We've been told that for sure, but they haven't ruled out considering that for the future. In light of the fact that we won the last race at Darlington, they didn't feel we warranted any help. I was quick to point out that we basically won that race in the pits.

"The 88 team (Jarrett) pulled off some heroic pit stops, most notably the last one that got Jarrett up front. That was the only way he was going to win that race because when you lead and are in clean air, the car works much better and he was able to stay out in front and make it happen. If his pit crew hadn't gotten him out in front, I'm sure we would not have won the race. We still think we need to get our nose kicked out [front air dam pushed forward], just like Chevrolet did last year, so we can better balance our car."

Robert Yates is the team owner of the Fords driven by Jarrett and Ricky Rudd. He is not so sure the rules changes will necessarily help the Fords at Daytona and Talladega, but believes it's a step in the right direction.

"When they made those Daytona and Talladega rules last year, that just took us out of the picture. We were not in the race at Talladega or Daytona," said Yates, whose teams used to dominate at those two tracks.

"We were not even in the lottery. I mean, you've got to be able to lead races to win races, so this rules change sounds good. We needed that. Anything less than that would still have us somewhat handicapped. We've still got to work hard, but that at least gives us a shot to run good.

"I still think we definitely need that inch-and-a-half to two inches on the nose. We need some real estate there. We've asked for two inches, but we'll take anything they give us."

Frank Stoddard is Jeff Burton's crew chief. Burton was expected to contend for the Winston Cup title this season but is currently 36th in the standings with his best finish of 18th at Darlington. His team is looking for anything that will get it back in a positive direction.

"I think it's great," Stoddard said. "In my estimation, NASCAR has continued to do a great job of looking at the parity in the sport. I know right now they're evaluating wind tunnel data from the downforce cars, but it's a tough box that we put them in. When you give somebody a little bit, they make it even better and I think that's the case with the Dodge.

"But when NASCAR sees an imbalance through data on the race track and data in the wind tunnel, they come back and, in their estimation, try to make the racing a little bit closer. I think it's outstanding that NASCAR continues to show that they're going to do their utmost to make every manufacturer feel that they're being treated fairly."



One Pontiac team, however, believes that the Grand Prix-equipped teams deserved to have some modifications made to its rules in order to be competitive at Talladega next month.

"We're disappointed," said James Ince, crew chief for Johnny Benson's Pontiac. "It's going to help the Ford out a lot on the superspeedways. I'm not sure why NASCAR did what it did today. Pontiac hasn't won a race this year and NASCAR hasn't helped us out. The Fords have whined and it's paying off. We were the best Pontiac at two superspeedways last year and got outran by the Fords. It's not going to affect the Pontiac at Talladega but this will surely help the Ford and hurt the Dodge. I didn't think Ford needed any help.

"Fortunately we go to Bristol this weekend where we don't have to worry too much about aerodynamics."